The Guide
by Kurogane7
Summary: AU: Princess Kisaragi had run away from the castle she grew up in...in her flight, she runs into a mansion inhabited by one man. What secret is her benefactor hiding? Rated T for now...
1. First Memory: Gear Up

_**A/N: I seriously don't know why I have so many ideas popping into my head…at this rate, the more ideas I get, the less likely I am to finish my stories…but then again, I suppose it is a good idea in a sense—because that way, I can see what stories are good and which are not worth continuing…so here goes…as usual, how many reviews I get now will determine whether or not I should go on with this story, so do read and review would you kindly?**_

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><p>The sounds of the airship "Highwind" was filling the air with its high-frequency chopping noises on the outside; but on the inside, soldiers sat around in a briefing room to get the specifics of the mission. Standing at the podium were two men: a man with a tilaka dead-center on his forehead and next to him was a taller man with red eyes, both men having the feline curves and body type that one would associate with one of Wutainese descent. Everyone knew that the commanders would not be gathering everyone from their day-to-day duties and training regimens if it weren't an important mission.<p>

The man with the tilaka cleared his throat and spoke up into the microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, we've received a mission from the higher-ups with a possible reason to celebrate. The intelligence guys report that our hunt for those Deepground terrorists is nearing the end. This source says that that traitorous bastard Hojo is holed up in our area…we all know what that man has done, and we all know about the atrocities that organization has committed. Because of this, we will be working closely with the Wusheng Imperial Guardsmen, the AVALANCHE mercenaries (regretfully), and all SOLDIER units stationed in the area for this mission. Part of our mission is to perform recon in the area—as well as to confiscate any and all samples of Hojo's work…you are not to engage any tangos until the other units are in place for the assault unless otherwise specified. Bravo Team will be sent to perform this part of the mission; meanwhile, I will be leading Alpha Team to be ready for the initial assault so that we clear a path for everyone else to finish the job. Are there any objections?"

Upon seeing that everyone was willing to do this mission, the commander simply smiled—he knew that every one of the soldiers under his command and that of his colleague next to him have been awaiting this day. Many of them have lost family to those terrorists—the man standing behind the commander being one of them and having lost the most. "Very well then, everybody suit up and get ready for your missions. The sooner we get this mission done, the sooner we can say Alpha Mike Foxtrot to those terrorist bastards as we send them all to hell, and then go home to enjoy the best-brewed glass of beer we can get our hands on!"

The soldiers all were excited at the prospect of this war on terror being over! There was only one term that would describe their feelings…and that word shouted out by all soldiers in the same room was "Oorah!"

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><p><em>Some folks are born made to wave a flag<em>

_Ooh, they're red white and blue! Lord!_

_And when the band plays "Hail to the chief",_

_Lord they're gonna point the cannon at you!_

_It ain't me! It ain't me!_

_I ain't no senator's son!_

_It ain't me! It ain't me!_

_I ain't no fortunate one!_

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><p>Within minutes, the armory was filled with the sounds of soldiers getting ready for battle as clips were loaded, knives were sharpened before being sheathed, and ballistic armor was being put on. Rucksacks were being prepared according to each soldier's specialty…some rucksacks were larger to accommodate a medical kit, others carried remote detonators and C-4, and several of them carried hacking tools. These soldiers are members of "Turk Company" in the WRO Special Operations Unit, and they were getting ready for a mission.<p>

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><p><em>Some folks are born, silver spoon in hand!<em>

_Lord don't they help themselves?_

_And when the tax-man comes to the door,_

_Ooh, the house looks like a rummage-sale!_

_It ain't me! It ain't me!_

_I ain't no millionaire's son!_

_It ain't me! It ain't me!_

_I ain't no fortunate one!_

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><p>With their weapons ready everyone stood near the cargo bay. It was not long until the twang of the pilot filled the speakers. "All right you sneaky bludgers we're almost there. We're getting closer to the drop-off zone…that area is the fucking closest I can get to dropping you fucking Special Forces bastards to the target without compromising my ship. If this mission is going down worse than fucking prawns in a bloody barbie, then Wolf and Eagle will call me up…I'll be around to bring upon those terrorist blighters the 'wrath of god' that their fucking asses have been asking for all this time. Now get down there, and show those buggers what happens when they kill for the sake of killing, and kick their sodding asses for me when you get there!"<p>

With one last "Oorah!" all the soldiers began jumping out of the plane one by one, releasing their parachutes. As they floated down to the jungle below them, all members of the Turk Company had hidden their excitement in order to be more professional—by all that is good and holy, their mission will be done, and none of those terrorist scumbags will survive this final assault! As it stands, thanks to the special operations and a few black operations contracts done by Turk Company to cause what would be a turning point for their enemy into a great big FUBAR, and since then the terrorists have been on the run for the past four years now, and where they are going is not to their last stand but to their judgment in hell for all the innocent people they had killed. With that thought of a complete and decisive victory in their minds, the soldiers could not help but ask themselves…what could go wrong with the mission? As far as they knew, there's no possible way that this final battle would turn into a big Charlie Foxtrot.

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><p><em>Some folks are born with star-spangled eyes!<em>

_Ooh, they send you down to war!_

_And when they ask them, "How much should we give?"_

_Ooh, they only answer "More, more, more"!_

_It ain't me! It ain't me!_

_I ain't no military man's son!_

_It ain't me! It ain't me!_

_I ain't no fortunate one!_

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><p><em><strong>AN: John Fogerty and CCR are one of my favorite classic rock bands along with Jimi Hendrix and Queen. Since they're on a war against terror, I figured it was sort of fitting, although this is only a flashback chapter.**_

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><p><em><strong>Songs Used:<strong>_

"_**Playing with Danger" by Valve Studio Orchestra from "Team Fortress 2"—the briefing**_

"_**Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival—Turk Company arming up and jumping out of the "Highwind" to parachute into the jungle**_

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><p><em><strong>VocabularyCulture Notes:**_

_**Tango—this is a military term for a target, although it is also used in the NATO alphabet to designate the letter 'T' on the radio.**_

_**Alpha Mike Foxtrot—this is a military taunt for "Adios My friend" (nice way) or "Adios Mother Fucker" (mean way)**_

_**FUBAR—a military abbreviation for "Fucked Up Beyond All Reason"**_

_**Oorah—this is a word that means anything but no; this came from the British abbreviation for heard, understood, acknowledged (HUA).**_

_**Charlie Foxtrot—military speak for "Cluster-Fuck", so you can assume that this is pretty bad**_


	2. Encounter

_**A/N: Since this story has gotten a somewhat respectable number of reviews, I shall be continuing it as well…who knows? Maybe it'll be a decent story in its own right with many more reviews and subscriptions…in any case, do read and review would you kindly?**_

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><p>Fifty years later…<p>

The sound of thunder clapping through the sky had echoed through the dense jungle of Wutai while the lightning bolts had illuminated the path of the runaway teenager as they made it clear that she didn't care where she went, as long as she was running somewhere the guards wouldn't find her…she refused to go along with this…she had taken so much abuse, and had proven herself more than enough, but now was the last straw. The samurai bodyguards were way behind her—thanks to her throwing the dogs off her trail by giving her sweater to a homeless woman and paying her twenty gil to have a nice dinner, it would be a while before they actually caught up to her…this in her opinion was a gross mismanagement of resources as the samurai were definitely not meant to do the job of a ninja. That's not to say that she didn't appreciate what many of the samurai did as the shock troopers and heavy infantry for her country; it's just that they were meant to serve by adding a sledgehammer to the scalpel that the ninja provides.

As she sat in the trees with her giant shuriken slung over her back and a messenger bag full of goodies to help her last longer, she was thankful that the rain would wash away her scent…once this night was done she was free to go anywhere so long as her father could not locate her to do what he did again. But first things first…she had to find some shelter from the rain—after all, there's no point to freedom if you didn't live long enough to enjoy it. After taking her rest, she ran forward deeper into the jungle, jumping through the branches to avoid being seen instantly, but as she got closer, the runaway found that the tree line was getting thinner and thinner. It's likely that there is a clearing up ahead. Continuing on through the woods, she found the clearing she was looking for, but what she saw astounded her.

Looking at the sight before her, she saw a valley filled with mist at the bottom, and rising above the mist was a villa like no other she had seen. It was a traditional Wutainese estate with a dirt road leading out of the valley and past the six red-lacquered torii gateways that lead to the estate. The sixth torii was built into a wall surrounding the estate and supporting a double-door that ran up the threshold of the gateway near the top. Something about this place gave her this sense of otherworldliness…as if something spiritual resided here and the area was sacred ground. Perhaps it was the effect of the mist that gave her that feeling. In any case, the fact that there was a mansion here told her that perhaps there would be someone kind enough to take her in. With that thought on mind, she climbed down the valley slowly—no way in hell was she going to slip, fall, and become some animal's food.

As soon as she made it to the walls of the estate, she noted that it was made of stone and mortar, and the eaves were covered in lacquered terracotta tiles. The second she approached the gates, she noted that the oaken doors had a yin-yang emblem carved in the middle of both of them such that they interlocked…whatever this place was, it was a very lavish place, and whomever lived her must be well-off to have been able to afford this, and the granite lion statues guarding both sides of the doors were proof of this. It wasn't long until she found the knocker to the doors, and sounded it off three times. If she was lucky, she would be able to stay in this estate before she would have to steal items of value and boost out of here before she would have to work for that stay.

While the runaway stood in front of the doorway, she noted the sound of click-clack and a wet pitter-patter sound getting closer and closer and yet muffled by the doors….she saw the door open up into a slit, masking the presence of anyone behind the door. "May I help you?"

The gravelly baritone of the voice sent shivers down the runaway's spine like an electric current…she could not tell whether or not she should feel hot and heavy from the adrenaline pumping through her blood due to the pleasure she felt upon hearing the voice, or cold and to the breaking point of emptying her bladder from fear. Perhaps she felt both at the same time, but suffice to say, she'll have to deal with the owner of that voice if she wants to get a warm place to stay. And so she brought up her courage…and ignoring the short circuit that was going on in the nervous system of her body. "Hi, I'm sorry to bother you at this hour, but I've gotten lost. Can you give me a place to stay?"

"I'm sorry, but I don't think…"

"Please! It's only for a night!"

The voice behind the door paused for a moment, and sighed. "Fine, you may enter the grounds…but do keep in mind that we're alone out here in the wilderness, and so we live outside the laws of man. As long as you keep your hands to yourself, I shall do the same. Am I clear?"

"Yeah, clear as a mako crystal!"

"Very well then, you are welcome in the grounds provided that you do no wrong."

With that said, the owner of the voice opened the door, and the runaway gazed upon the man—whatever pleasure or fear she felt upon hearing his voice was amplified by what she saw: the man was wearing a men's one-piece black kimono made with fine silk and a pattern of crashing waves on the bottom and around the left sleeve and tied up by an indigo-colored obi and covered by a navy blue haori. Around his left wrist was a small band of Buddhist prayer beads. "Now then, if you'll just follow me, I'll show you to your room."

The sound of click-clack had filled the air with each step that the man took as his geta had stepped on wet stone tiles, mixed in with the wet pitter-patter of the rain hitting the rice paper umbrella. As they were walking through the stone tile walkway to the mansion that was flanked on both sides with more granite guardian lions with fields of sakura trees behind them their branches swaying about in the wind, the runaway studied her host even further as he held the umbrella above them; the man himself had long silky black hair that went down to his lower back and pale skin—what was his most undeniably striking feature was that unlike the normal Wutainese person who had violet or at least lavender-colored eyes (such as in her case), his eyes were more of a maroon color that bordered on downright crimson…his body type however was the sort that held a sort of hidden power in the grace of its feline form as with any other Wutainese person, and it was the sort that any woman in her right mind would sell her soul for a one-nighter at the very least. From what she could tell about him from his physical appearance, he had probably descended from the natives of Suiryuseki island kingdom southeast of Wutai. But then again, she had travelled rather far down to the southern half of the empire, so it should be no surprise.

The second they stopped at the lacquered wooden floor, the runaway noted that her host was living in a traditional-style mansion with two floors. At the front of the house, she noted an incandescent light bulb—this was a sign to her that this was a relatively modern mansion, and where there was incandescent lights, there just had to be the biggest blessing in her mind: heated water! At the thought of finally getting a warm bath for the day, the runaway had thought back to days long past, when her mother was still alive—she would deliberately get dirty just to have her mother come and bathe her…nowadays, a hot bath reminded her of better days when her father was actually a good one, and that her family had not been broken.

As he took off his geta and stepped his tabi-covered feet on the floor, the host continued to speak while closing the umbrella. "As you can probably tell, I have all the basic luxuries here in this house, and I work by myself to maintain it. Everything is powered by a dedicated generator—nobody in Wutai is getting this power however, as I live out here."

The runaway took off her sneakers and got up and into the house following her host. "What are we going to do about food?"

"You're lucky—I just happened to get a chocobo today as I was hunting in the woods…along with some fresh fruits for dessert."

"You're all alone?"

"I'm afraid so…although you need not worry for your pride. I've been uninterested in that sort of contact for a while now…and I most definitely have no love for your father's policy on dealing with the new-age yakuza."

The look on the runaway's face had a look of surprise pasted on…how did this man know about her father?

"Don't look so surprised, the fact that I live alone out here does not mean that I don't keep in touch with the news in one way or another. I have a satellite dish that allows me internet and television, so I know about what's going on outside these walls at the very least. I won't ask why you ran away, I only ask that you be so kind as to not damage anything or steal anything on the path you are going after this…and yes, I've also heard of your reputation as 'The Thieving Princess Kisaragi Yuffie'."

"Aren't you going to throw me out or something?"

"There's no need…after all, if any sort of wrongdoing occurs here, nobody's going to hear me punish you. And besides, I think I've been lonely enough already—and so any sort of company is better than none at all…it's not good for my sanity to simply sit around by my lonesome."

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><p>Yuffie lay around in the futon sprawling around on the tatami mats…yes, this was the sort of quality she really liked! This man should rent this place out as an inn—he would definitely make a killing! Although the way she saw it, even though it was lonesome, he did have everything he needed here.<p>

"Are you comfortable?"

She jumped out of her sheets as she found her host standing in the shoji door looking at her with those terrifying-yet-mesmerizing red eyes of his. "Uh, yeah. I'm quite comfy actually…"

"I must apologize…I've been living alone out here for so long that I've forgotten how to treat guests. When you need anything, give me a call…"

"Before you go, can I have your name?"

"In the Suiryuseki Kingdom, my proper name would have been Wing-San, but in the western language, I am called 'Vincent Valentine'."

"That's strange…you look like you descended from the Suiryuseki Kingdom from both sides, and you have a completely western name."

"My father was an orphan. In honor of the reverend that raised him, he took on the surname of Valentine even though he was a Buddhist at heart."

"Ah…"

"Rest up. You may very well need your strength to continue your life on the lam, and I hope that you don't mind that I've taken your clothes to the wash. They should be dry and ready for your departure by tomorrow. Also, breakfast will be at around nine o'clock if you are interested."

"That's fine. I'll see you then."

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><p>Vincent closed the shoji door to his guest's room. She was actually rather odd for a girl like herself…this princess who ran away from home. It sounded like some sort of fairy-tale that he would be a part of…a rather romantic fairy tale that he had no interest participating in at the moment. Not when his current 'work' as of this moment was rather important. No, as much as he has every desire to go and find love again, he cannot—he will not risk another one…he will not!<p>

But as he sat on the cushion in the center of his room, he began to identify what it was he was wishing for…to long for freedom from the loneliness he was forever cursed with…wait a minute, what was he thinking about? Where would he find the love he wanted? Where would he find respite from his curse? Bah! Perhaps it was time for more meditation—after all, it was prescribed by spiritual medicine that meditation aided in many things, even in times of confusion…

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><p><em><strong>AN: Thanks to all who have reviewed thus far…you've all been wonderful readers. Any reviews you have would be lovely—as it would help me to get stronger in the art of writing, just as everyone else wishes to accomplish.**_

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><p><em><strong>Songs Used:<strong>_

"_**Overture" by Michael Salvatori and Martin O'Donnel from "Halo 3: ODST"—Yuffie running around in the rain.**_

"_**Hyuuga Theme" by Toshiro Masuda from "Naruto"—Vincent going into meditation in his room**_

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><p><em><strong>VocabularyCulture Notes:**_

_**Torii—this is the traditional Japanese gateway, its literal name means "bird perch".**_

_**Suiryuseki—this is Japanese for "Water Dragon Rock"**_

_**Wing-San—this is Cantonese for "Spring Mountain", as close as a Romanization in Chinese for "Vincent" I could think of.**_

_**Shoji—this is a sliding door with rice-paper screens.**_


	3. Second Memory: Assault

_**A/N: We move back in time to fifty years ago…I promise a slice of cake for every person who can guess the true identity of Eagle in this chapter. You'll find out why Yuffie ran away from home, but only from her viewpoint as I plan to reveal in the next chapter as she tries to mull on the identity of her host. But in the meantime, I promise some good old-fashioned wartime scenes for you in this chapter. So do read and review would you kindly?**_

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><p>Fifty years ago…<p>

Everyone was in position…Turk Company Bravo Team at this time was mostly made up of snipers of all calibers and their spotters, and so their mission as of this moment after performing recon in the area was to hold their position—according to the tactical data, the area they were overlooking was an abandoned mithril factory. Luckily, nobody was seen with the dense cover of the jungle giving plenty of hiding places in plain view it would be difficult to be seen, and it would be a matter of time before the assault would begin. These gave a perfect view on the sniper nests and anti-air emplacements in addition to turret defenses by all members of Bravo Team…and deep recon had revealed much inside the old factory.

Bravo Team's list of things to do for now was to take out the snipers and the anti-air emplacements so that the other factions can attack with relative impunity and so that air support can be called down from the Highwind good and proper in the event that it would be required. After all resistance was taken care of and air support was guaranteed, the next target would be the turret gunners—once the charge begins, it would not do for the rest of the units to be mowed down by heavy machine gun fire. Once everything is all clear and ready for the attack, Alpha Team would lead the assault, and there would be no escape; by then, Bravo Team would probably have run out of ammunition—it would be safe for all snipers and their spotters to actually join in the fray to aid in mopping up the rest of the resistance before finding all files and data in Hojo's research. Hojo himself was to be taken alive so that he could be interrogated and tried before he would go to his most definite execution.

The leader of the team, known only as Eagle was identified by the eagle-skull pattern on his mouth-less balaclava, and his tall stature. When in this sort of mission, he was well-known to favor his customized Chaos Industries Death Penalty semi-automatic sniper rifle with a heavy barrel chambered for .50 BMG that he named "Rachel" as his weapon of choice. His backup weapons however are his scoped 5.56x45mm assault rifle with an under-slung 12-gauge shotgun and his customized .500 S&W tri-barreled Cerberus Mk. VI revolver he named "Alexia", but in the event he had to engage in melee combat, he had a pair of short swords strapped to the back of his waist. His spotter carried a giant shuriken on her back and had her binoculars trained on a sniper near a cooling vent.

The spotter kept her eye on the target—no movement from the man with the rocket launcher yet, but the atmosphere was getting rather tense. Whispered small talk seemed to be a solution. "So when do you suppose I should tell everyone?"

"I would keep quiet until we actually have the chance to celebrate. That way we'll have more of a reason to toast to you Shuriken. I'll say this though, Katana is rather lucky to be marrying a beautiful woman such as yourself."

"Thanks, but what about you? How are you holding up since Tifa left you?"

"Don't say it like that…she didn't leave me. I just chose to let her go."

"Why? She's been chasing after you since we were recruits, what's changed?"

"She found out that Cloud Strife from SOLDIER had feelings for her. I first noticed the conflict in her eyes on our last date—I cut our date short and escorted her home after I confronted her about it because I could see that her heart was going to some other man…and you know what the funny thing is? That man happened to be my friend! As I was walking back to my flat, sure, I was…not exactly pleased with the news—that I had unknowingly been betrayed; but then as soon as I reached my apartment, I realized something: I realized that Cloud had loved Tifa longer than I had! That he would have readily given to her everything I did not have at this very moment. Once I knew that he was a better man for her than I was, I realized that she would eventually give her heart wholeheartedly to him and if I continued this charade that she loved me with all her heart, I would be the one who destroyed her. Sure, I could be seen as a coward, and I'd be looked down upon…but that's okay, I only wish her happiness; she deserves it after what happened to her in Nibelheim—I only fear that one day she will forget me."

"Don't worry about it. You've been the best boyfriend any woman would ask for…in fact, being one of your ex-girlfriends, I know that there is so much to you that any woman would sell themselves for, and so I know you'll find the one woman for you."

Before he could answer, voice had come on the private channel between the leaders. "Bravo Sierra Tango Two-One-Niner, this is Alpha Alpha Tango Three-One-Four, come in Eagle."

"This is Bravo Sierra Tango Two-One-Niner, go ahead Wolf."

"Mission is a go! Drop those tangos you're all looking at, and Alpha Team will move in for the first assault…everyone else is currently Oscar Mike—they'll be here, they don't want to miss an opportunity for dealing with those terrorist Mike Foxtrots and finally putting their reign of terror down."

"I'm already getting pains from the anticipation…gotcha Wolf they'll never know what hit them." The next thing that happened was that Eagle switched the channel on his headset before speaking into the microphone. "Bravo Team, this is Bravo Leader, prepare to open fire. By the time this is over, I want none of those terrorists alive to tell the tale of this assault. Target the anti-air first, then go for the snipers and turret gunners on my mark…three…two…one…commence firing!"

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><p><em>Purple haze all in my brain<br>Lately things just don't seem the same  
>Actin' funny, but I don't know why<br>'Scuse me while I kiss the sky_

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><p>Before long, Eagle pulled the trigger on his rifle, sending the 50-caliber bullet streaking through the air, and causing his target's head to explode in a pink mist of blood, bone, gore, and gray matter. The shot was heard and unseen, but the sniper next to the rocket launcher noticed the fate of his colleague, and looked around before he suffered the same fate, only the next round penetrated through the lens of his scope, pierced through his right eye, and totally annihilated his head. Shuriken on the other hand was next to him, directing him to the next targets…another sniper was hiding in a building—he was shot in the throat and subsequently decapitated as the round exploded upon piercing the skin and penetrating the larynx. The fourth and final consecutive shot for Eagle's rifle then impaled the ammo box for a belt-fed heavy machine gun, causing the rounds inside the box to explode and turning a cube-shaped cartridge full of ammunition into an impromptu frag grenade that sent fragments flying into turret gunner's face and blinding him painfully.<p>

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><p><em>Purple haze all around<br>Don't know if I'm comin' up or down  
>Am I happy or in misery?<br>Whatever it is, that girl put a spell on me _

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><p>Eagle pulled off the magazine, reloaded, and pulled the bolt on the sniper rifle before taking aim again. The snipers were causing pure pandemonium as all defenses were getting pummeled. The second the guards at the gates were taken down, Alpha Team rushed in taking down every terrorist gunman in sight with their assault rifles and submachine guns or with their specialty weapons…Wolf was taking careful aim with his 9mm burst pistol, putting three bullets at a time into several of his targets while cutting down anyone who got too close with his katana, Bear held his 40mm pump-action grenade launcher in his hands, pumping round after round at his enemies, and causing major havoc before he reloaded another six rounds into the chamber before pulling out his .45 ACP pistol and emptying the magazine and pulling out brass knuckles to begin smashing his fists into the faces of his unfortunate victims before the cold gaze of his sunglasses-covered eyes.<p>

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><p><em>Help me help me<br>Oh no no... no_

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><p>So many of Turk Company's finest members had done this before, and nothing was going to stop them now…no, not when the sound of victory had come when APCs containing the seal of AVALANCHE had crashed through the fences, allowing their payloads of SOLDIER units and AVALANCHE mercenaries to rush out with their heavy weapons to bring supporting fire and more damage to the table…the Wusheng Imperial Guard had snuck into the battlefield to provide more power by assassinating officers and doing major damage to any groups of enemies around to stagger their formations.<p>

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><p><em>Yeah<br>Purple haze all in my eyes  
>Don't know if it's day or night<br>You've got me blowin, blowin my mind  
>Is it tomorrow or just the end of time? <em>

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><p>It wasn't long until Bravo joined the fray…yes this mission was going very smoothly…although Eagle could not help but wonder, as he prepared his assault rifle for close encounters—could it be that this mission was going too smoothly?<p>

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><p><em><strong>AN: Short, I know, but I intended to show how the mission went and what happens to Eagle through these flashbacks into fifty years ago. I hope I can be forgiven for this, and for the fact that I put Vincent and Tifa in a relationship in the first place...in any case, thanks for reading up to this point.**_

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><p><em><strong>Songs Used:<strong>_

"_**Ride of the Valkyries" by Richard Wagner—Eagle receives his orders, and then relays them to Bravo Team.**_

"_**Purple Haze" by Jimi Hendrix—Eagle firing the first shot, and the beginning of the assault.**_

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><p><em><strong>VocabularyCulture Notes:**_

_**Balaclava—this is the notorious bank-robber's ski mask.**_

_**.50 BMG—this is a rather big caliber usually for a large-caliber machine-gun or a sniper rifle. It has lots of stopping power due to it being a rather large bullet.**_

_**5.56x45mm NATO—this is the bullet used in the M16/M4 assault rifle.**_

_**9mm and .45ACP—these are semiautomatic pistol cartridges, the 9mm being the smaller of the two.**_

_**.500 S&W—this is a rather big pistol cartridge, not practical in combat. Normally used for a revolver.**_

_**Oscar Mike—military for "On the Move".**_

_**Larynx—the Adam's apple, not as prominent as in ladies as it is in men…also known as the voice box.**_


	4. Breakfast Time

_**A/N: Oh my, it's backstory time! That's right kids, we're going to learn why Yuffie ran away from the palace! And in addition to that, we will now learn what Vincent does when he's not hunting or watching over thieving ninja princesses! Do read and review, would you kindly?**_

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><p>Present day…<p>

Yuffie awoke to the scent of something delicious wafting through the air…her highly-trained nose had identified the scents of chocobo egg, steamed rice, unagi, and chocobo meat mixed in with spices. With the way that Vincent had been cooking that wild bird he hunted down, it's no wonder he could survive alone for this long. According to what she had been taught about the Suiryuseki culture, the kingdom was made up of tribes, which were organized into twelve nations for each group of islands or sector of Southern Wutai, each nation having a nobleman that advised and answered only to the king—each member of the tribes, be they the lowliest of peasants to the upper echelons of the nobility, are trained to survive on their own and to respect the balance of nature, and so everyone was taught to hunt and forage for food at a young age in addition to their superb marksmanship and free-running skills. Surprisingly, this was apparently a tradition that carried on to this day, as despite the advances in technology that have been introduced to the lives of the people of that island kingdom, everyone was still taught to survive in the wild should they have to go in there.

As she pondered on about her host, she found that it was a good way to distract her from the situation she had found herself in. Now a runaway princess with a sort of kleptomaniac tendency would not be such a big problem—it was pretty much a big slap on the wrist in that case. But her actions in the palace had pretty much guaranteed that if the samurai found her, she would be punished by her father in every sense of the word.

"Breakfast is ready."

She felt her heart jump through her throat, as she heard those three words…and it threatened to jump out of her mouth knowing that she was surprised by her host. As she studied Vincent with a scrutinizing gaze, wearing his kimono, she began to wonder how he was able to move around so quietly.

"Oh don't worry about it…I'll be out of your hair in a jiffy…"

Before she could finish her sentence, Vincent raised his hand in a gesture of interrupting her politely. "I insist…like I said, it's been a while since I've had any sort of company—and since I've gotten weary of all this time with nothing but the flowers and the stone lions for company, I may as well enjoy breakfast with you while you're here. Besides, I can tell…after hearing of where you ran from, I am not surprised that you would be hungry right about now."

Yuffie was just about to protest when she heard a loud and soft rumbling sound before the words could even escape her throat—to her humiliation, he was right…as the rumbling was coming from her stomach. And the smell of the food didn't help either. "Okay, but in exchange no talking about my past…got it?"

"Very well, I know full well how badly the past can hurt, and so you have a deal."

With that, Vincent bent over and helped Yuffie to her feet and started guiding her through the hallway. Walking on the tatami mats and getting onto the wooden floor, she could see that this entire place was beautiful…and well-maintained. The floor and the columns were made of a high-quality lacquer finish over a very strong wood—probably oak or a very strong cherry while the columns were made of pine or ash. The shoji themselves were made of hand-carved oak with dragon and phoenix motifs at the base of the frame with both creatures facing each other as if in courtship. It would seem that Valentine here was a well-to-do person who was living a simple life—one that would only be more likely if he were an elder. She immediately pushed the thought out of her head—Vincent was not an old man, and yet for some reason, her instincts had given her the feeling that he was older than the mid- to late-twenties appearance he was managing to pull off. Before long, she found herself in what appeared to be a dining area with two bowls with chopsticks next to them in front of a pair of mats that were next to a small iron nabemono pot hanging from a rope to the ceiling filled with steamed rice. Between the two mats were a tray with a clay teapot with two teacups to the side and three dishes: one dish had scrambled chocobo egg cutlets with parsley and cilantro, another had small unagi fillets with the barbecue sauce, and the last dish contained steamed chocobo breast slices mixed in with julienne-cut ginger, green onion, and shiitake. All in all, it was a light amount for a breakfast, but it was still mouth-watering.

The two of them knelt down on the mats facing each other…Yuffie poured the tea in both cups while Vincent served the rice in both bowls. "I'm surprised you eat chocobo…I heard that the Suiryuseki people have put so much spiritual value on the bird that nobody eats it."

"It's a sacred meat that requires one to pray to the bird when hunting it or at least just before killing it in order to make the meat kosher. And since we consider wastefulness as a sin to our beliefs and an insult to the bird, we make sure to put every part of the bird to some use…like I would burn the bones into a sort of ash to make ink for sumi-e or as fertilizer for my flowers. "

"You do gardening?"

"One of the skills I have picked up in my stay here—living alone out here does that to you."

"So why are you living out here alone anyway?"

"If I answer, can I ask why you ran away?"

"I thought I said 'no talking about my past'…what's up?"

"I kind of figured that if you weren't interested in discussing the past, then perhaps you weren't interested in my past either. Communication is a two-way street Princess…you usually have to give before you receive."

"Fine then, I'll tell you my story, but in exchange you're answering first."

"My father built this mansion…it was shortly after the incident fifty years ago—as a matter of fact, he was there when it happened. Anyway, when he died at Deepground's Last Stand, he left this place to my mother in his will…we were a rather tight-knit family. He died so young…and without knowing that he was going to be a father…anyway, after I was born, my mother raised me here alone and for some reason took great care to make sure I took good care of this place—even going so far as to getting me private tutors to keep me educated, and making me promise to make sure it is still standing when we have the eventual family reunion."

Yuffie knew of the incident fifty years ago…it was in history books, as well as the events that lead up to it, and it was all because of a terrorist organization known as Deepground. The Deepground terrorist organization was formed almost seventy-five years ago when malcontented individuals under the command of Professor Hojo had covertly organized and had begun making attacks against various places with high volumes of civilians. Among the deaths caused by the terrorists was the Suiryuseki royal family at the time—during a bombing of the royal palace. The couple was survived by a seven-year-old son that had disappeared—but in the meantime, regents had been taking the royal family's place until the prince was ready and of age to take his place on the throne…even then, nobody knows what had happened to the prince. It wouldn't be until almost twenty years after the palace bombing that the Deepground terrorists started getting their just desserts…the Shin-Ra Republic, the Wusheng imperial guard, and many others had begun a sort of counterattack against the terrorist organization that drove them to their last hideout and ending the war in one final year. To think that Vincent's grandfather was involved in such a significant event was mind-blowing, and to be part of "Deepground's Last Stand" must have made the man a hero by now, as the event was said to have been the final year of Deepground's reign of terror up until Hojo's bizarre and gruesome murder. "Who was your father?"

"He was codenamed 'Eagle' by his colleagues I believe."

"Eagle? As in 'Eagle of Turk Company'…THAT Eagle?" Oh, everybody knew the legend of Eagle of Turk Company…also by other such titles given to him as "Crackshot of the WRO", "Eagle-Eye", "King of Turk Company", and even "Terrorist Hunter" by those against Deepground, but to the opposition that were unfortunate to see him at work up close, he is known simply and universally as the "Eagle Demon" because of the eagle skull pattern of his balaclava and crimson color of his eyes looking them in the face when he performed the coup de grace upon them at high speeds and from the fact that he always survives any firefight with them. He was said to be the only man in the company who scored a 100% accuracy rate at the firing range with all firearms (moving targets included), but his signature weapons were a heavy-barrel Death Penalty sniper rifle and a heavy-caliber Cerberus revolver that he lovingly customized on his own.

"Yes. I heard from my mother that he died in his late teens after acquiring the balaclava of the last man with the title of Eagle."

"He trained under the original Eagle?"

"According to what I've heard, yes."

"Interesting." Yuffie had to give the man credit…he told a wonderful tale—perhaps if he left the house, he would be a great movie director…or a lustfully delicious…_NO! Bad Yuffie! Bad! Stop thinking of him as a fashion model! In fact, don't think about him in one of those…GAH! Why must you continuously think of him in any erotic fashion! Why are you thinking of him pinning you to the wall, ripping off your shirt, and taking…Here you go again! Always going into the gutter!_ All thoughts aside however, there was something in what Vincent told her that implied that he was not telling her the truth. Perhaps during her stay here, she'll find out what he's hiding and why…but for now, she has a bit of breakfast to enjoy!

"Now for my end of the bargain…why did you run away?"

Upon hearing those words, Yuffie almost choked on her eggs and rice. Her voice was awkward at this point. "We don't really have to do this now do we?"

"A deal's a deal after all."

Yuffie snorted at that…but then again, she figured it was probably fair—after all, he did tell her something personal. She sighed and put down her bowl empty of rice. "Okay, I'm going to tell you…so don't laugh at me!"

Vincent filled both cups with tea, and motioned for her to begin. "Okay, so here goes. Now this story starts a long way back…I'm a rebellious daughter, no doubt about that…I had followed traditions as per allowing her to rule independently—a goal that I've had on mind ever since my mother Empress Mitsuyoshi Hana died weeks after she had been diagnosed with Geostigma. I promised on her deathbed at the age of seven that I would be the best empress that Wutai would ever see…and that I would work really hard to unite the people of the Fuukousougen Empire and the Suiryuseki Kingdom to make the island nation stronger politically, economically, and militarily.

"Now I wasn't stupid—I knew that after the incident fifty years ago, all of Wutai had hit such a depression that crime was rampant everywhere to the point that people listened to the yakuza more than the emperor, and this was especially true in the Fuukousougen Empire, but less so for the Suiryuseki Kingdom for some odd reason. In the course of my childhood, I learned that even Godo had dealings with the new-age yakuza of the friendly sort. As a good daughter, I had kept my mouth regarding my contempt and disgust about the whole deal shut with the silent promise to myself that as soon as I took power, my first act as empress would be to clean up the streets of the Fuukousougen Empire by finding a new means of earning income for her people and throwing all the yakuza in jail and executing the hardcore criminals among them. In addition to my promise, I also kept silent because I knew that as of this moment, the crime lords were bringing in lots of cash that ensured the survival of Wutai due to the casinos they operated, the black market smuggling operations they ran internationally had introduced lots of imported and mostly illegal goods for lower prices, illegal salvage jobs ensured that Wutai had a steady amount of resources pouring in, and yakuza assassins saw to it that nobody was stupid enough to disrupt the peace (some of them being rouge ninjas from the Wusheng Imperial Guard). Godo denied any accusation of his involvement with any criminal organization, and the yakuza in turn did a good job of covering their tracks…the reason being that Godo ultimately had the power to close them all down—and so in exchange for turning a blind eye to the deeds of the new-age yakuza and such men as Don Corneo, the new-age yakuza would keep the economy of Wutai stable so long as their activities remained discrete.

"Anyway, almost twelve years had passed since I made that promise to my mom, and my father decided to arrange a marriage between me and a fat Mafioso—and worse, he chose a yakuza boss to be the next emperor to the throne! That was the last straw! And how did I find out? That fat and greasy bastard walked up to me from behind, saying that now that the two of us were betrothed, he could do whatever the hell he wanted with me!" At that, she shuddered, thinking of the memory sipping away at her tea. "He said that as he started rubbing his hand all over me, and touching me! The nerve…now don't get me wrong, I may be a tomboyish sort of girl, and I'll admit with a bit of difficulty that my training in politics and those secret martial arts lessons had toned it down a little so I could be more ladylike as per tradition; but I was still a lady with standards, and it would be a cold day in hell if I would allow that man to rub those fat greasy sausages he calls fingers all over my body, and before marriage! After that moment, I brought my leg up so that my heel had smashed into his family jewels, before landing a straight kick to his solar plexus as he flinched from the impact of the first kick. Looking on in disgust at the Mafioso, and my father as he walked in, I ran out the window, and used the free-running techniques she learned to escape the samurai that were sent to pursue me."

"And in your flight, you ended up here…losing the samurai that were sent to bring you back to the palace."

At that, Yuffie finished her cup of tea, and allowed Vincent to refill it. "Bingo."

"What will you do now?"

"Well, I certainly don't want to go back to the palace…but I intend to think on it while I'm running."

"What about restoring the empire?"

"It's so far gone into corruption that I don't think there's any possible way that I can salvage it…Godo saw to that."

"You could stay here until this whole thing blows over…or at least you can lay low here for a couple more days to get your strength. In any case, I think it would be a very good idea for you to get moving now. From what I've heard of the Fuukousougen Empire's policy on runaway members of the imperial family, if the samurai fail to bring back said runaway, then ninjas will be sent in to do the job. If that's the case, then you'll have more than simply samurai with dogs to dodge as ninjas won't be so easily fooled; you do realize that right?"

"Yeah, I know that. But why do you want me to stay?"

"Like I said before, it's been getting too lonely around here lately. I figure, perhaps I can get a bit of an extension with you staying here in exchange for hiding you."

"You're not going to do what Corneo did with me are you?"

"Don't be silly…I may be lonely, but not THAT lonely."

"Okay, thanks. But what are we going to do in the meantime?"

"Since I still haven't finished cooking the rest of the chocobo, I'm going to be tending to the garden…I think the rhododendrons are in need of clipping, and besides, I have my client coming here to pick some flowers."

"Client?"

"Few people know of this location. My client, if you can call her that, comes here at least once a week to pick some flowers for her flower shop, and usually compensates me with a percentage of what she sells. Such a sweet girl actually…anyway, if you'd like, you can help me with the garden."

"No thanks. I think I'll see about those dishes."

"Very well then…but if you meet the client, please treat her politely."

Yuffie silently chuckled to herself…now was a very good opportunity to pick his locks and find his valuables so that she can escape after robbing him blind!

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><p><em><strong>AN: Okay kids, now that we have our handy-dandy notebook ready, can anybody tell me who Vincent's client is? As usual, do read and review would you kindly? Do so, and I'll do my best to continue on the story of what happened at the assault.**_

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><p><em><strong>Songs Used:<strong>_

"_**Lakeside" by Daisuke Ishiwatari from "Blazblue Song Accord #2: With Continuum Shift II": Breakfast time, and Vincent's explanation of how he's living alone.**_

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><p><em><strong>VocabularyCulture Notes:**_

_**Fuukousougen—this is read in kanji as "Wind Tiger Plains".**_

_**Fuukousougen and Suiryuseki—this is a feng shui (literally means "wind water" in Mandarin) reference…the wind in feng shui is represented by Baihu the white tiger (known in Japanese as "Byakko") while the blue dragon Qinglong ("Seiryu" in Japanese) represents water. Both are fierce representatives of the balance in all things because they are polar opposites of each other (Byakko is a wind and metal spirit of the west, Seiryu is a wood and water spirit of the east).**_

_**Sumi-e—the Japanese term for ink and wash painting, uses the same principles and materials as East Asian calligraphy.**_

_**Serving tea—while it is sometimes rude to pour tea for your friends in Europe or America without their permission, it is actually polite in Chinese cuisine to do so (pouring tea for everyone else that you can reach first is usually polite enough).**_


	5. Third Memory: Cornered Animals

_**A/N: It's back to the war on those Mike-Foxtrot terrorists now…and it seems that our heroes in Turk Company have it a bit of a rut…what are they going to do? Do read and review, would you kindly?**_

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><p>Fifty years ago…30 minutes after the assault order…<p>

Amid the sounds of heavy gunfire, Rabbit silently cursed as her heavy machine gun had run out of ammunition. Contrary to how her supermodel-type figure and her large bust would suggest, she had enough strength to use that heavy machine gun as if it were a regular assault rifle…and also contrary to her body type, she was also quite intelligent. Knowing that it would waste too much time to fit another belt of ammo into her machine gun, she quickly slung it over her shoulder, and drew her 9mm semiautomatic pistol just in time to put a bullet in the head of a terrorist about to run into her with a bomb strapped to his vest before firing three more rounds into the chest of another terrorist that popped out of cover. Her next shot penetrated the throat of another terrorist charging at her with a knife in hand.

She never did like using the handgun…it required more accuracy than she was used to, and she was mainly called upon for heavy support and to lay down covering fire—both of which are her specialties. While she had a respect for the portability of the weapon, and its convenience of use, it's just that whenever she did need to fight up close however, she preferred to let her fists do the talking—and besides, she hated having to be careful with a weapon that she never liked in the first place, given that she is already able to break it without much effort. And it was fortunate for her that this was just her element—because after the snipers let hell loose groundside, the terrorists began moving underground for more cover, and now she would make sure this remained a close-up fight. As she moved out of cover, she caught a shadow hiding behind a crate…with that on mind, she unhooked a fragmentation grenade from her belt, pulled the pin, and threw the ordinance in an arc and silently prayed that her aim and timing were true before firing a shot at the grenade and killing the target in cover with the premature detonation she had caused before she had to duck back into cover at the sound of assault rifles coming her way. The bullets were tearing away at the concrete wall she was hiding behind, and she knew that she was pinned down. This gave her an opportunity to change the belt of her heavy machine gun. Once the ammo was loaded, she peeked out of cover, and saw four men ducking down to reload. Now she had a guideline in her head. Checking her belt, she found a flashbang grenade…just what she was looking for! She had only one magazine left, and so she had to be more careful…her gun chews up a lot of ammo, and she was also alone.

Once assured that everything was ready after she pulled the pin, she peeked out of corner, and watched as the terrorists popped out of cover…and just as they did, the last thing they saw and heard was something flying through the air, and a flash and a very loud bang followed. Rabbit made sure to cover her eyes and ears before she jumped out of cover, and turned her targets into Swiss cheese. Satisfied with the result, she took a breath before she ducked upon hearing a gunshot from behind her—she turned and saw a with a pistol drawn…for some reason, the terrorist was not moving until he slumped to the ground dead, with a smoking bullet hole in his head, and as she inspected the damage, she saw that behind him were the corpses of almost ten more terrorists, all of them killed in single file with a single bullet to the head. She then saw that the smoking barrel belonged to a very familiar-looking sniper rifle in the hands of a certain colleague of hers that was walking towards her.

"This is awkward…who knew that I'd bump into you down here?"

An indignant look was on her face as she looked up at her colleague. "You're never going to let me live this down are you?"

Even though he wore a balaclava, Rabbit could feel the amusement radiating off of Eagle—she did know him well after all. "No I won't. So I heard that you've recently visited the temple. How is he?"

"Master Zangan is fine, but he still misses you…and he's praying for your family every day, as well as for the day you'd come back and train with him like in the old days…when all three of us still trained under him while Father Valentine watched over us as kids."

"Maybe I can pay both of them a visit afterwards."

"Eagle, I'm…"

"Later Rabbit; as much as I'd like to get ready to tear Cloud apart in the event that he has made you cry, I promise you that we'll discuss it afterwards. For now, we're going to have to go in deeper. There's no escape for those Mike Foxtrots—and so we'll make sure we send them all on that boat ride to their eternal judgment in hell."

"What's the plan?"

Eagle leveled his gaze towards the metal doorway at the end of the hall. "This level is cleared of all tangos, but the rest of those mass-murdering cowards are all holed up behind that doorway over there. Now behind that doorway is the way into Hojo's lab, which in turn will lead us to Hojo…whatever it is that he's studying up in there can't be good. I radioed for Weasel to bring Squirrel down here to get ready to breach that door, and for Wolf to bring the rest of Turk Company down here. As we speak, everyone is currently Oscar Mike…but they should be here shortly."

He began to discard his own assault rifle with the underslung shotgun and began turning his attention to scavenging the bodies for a new gun and ammo for said gun, as all his clips were empty save for the fresh cylinders of ammo for his revolver and one more clip for his sniper rifle. "In the meantime, you should probably take advantage of the time to get a new weapon—your heavy machine gun should be running out of ammo soon, and so you'll probably need to change your weapon to serve as a substitute to extend your supply of heavy ammunition."

As soon as his hand had found a submachine gun, Eagle felt a firm grip around his wrist. He knew what this meant, and so he turned his attention to Rabbit's wine-colored eyes—it was hard for him not to kiss her as it was those eyes that he fell in love with, that he was sure belonged to the one just for him…that he would finally have a way out of the curse of loneliness and emptiness that was sure to follow after the conclusion to the assault should they win and survive this. "Before this war is over, I want you to know something. If we die in this attack, I want you to know that I am still…"

"Rabbit, I know you are a good person, and so I beg of you to not finish that sentence. I appreciate your concern, but Cloud is as much my friend as you still are…I cannot bear to see you torn up and confused over this issue, and I refuse to betray him. I no longer love you the way I did when you wormed your way into my heart shortly after we saw each other again…I still care for you, but not in that way anymore. If you still love me, I ask that you let go of me. As much as I hate to admit it, I've observed Cloud; and from what I saw, I knew that he would readily give to you everything I didn't have for you at the time…that I still don't have for you yet. He has loved you longer than I have, and I hate to get in the way of such a love as strong as his. "

The tears in her eyes began to fall—Rabbit didn't want it to end. She still loved Eagle, but after six months, she found that she had fallen in love with Cloud. To hear him say such a thing tore at her already confused heart. She'd heard of Eagle leaving his girlfriends…she never understood why he did such a thing to those women until now. He was giving up his own happiness to make sure they remained happy, and every woman he had left up to this point was one that he had hopes would be the right one only for him. "What will you do after the war?"

"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine…I just need to keep looking for the one right woman for me."

"What if you never find her?"

"You know the saying; it's better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all. If I end up lonely looking for her, then so be it."

"As much as I am touched by this little scene, why don't we get this show on the road yo?"

The two of them turned to face three members of Turk Company walking down the hallway. The member of Alpha Team known as Weasel was easily identified by his fire-colored hair in addition to the bandanna covering the lower half of his face and the tinted ballistic goggles he always wears. Whenever he is assigned to sniper duty with Bravo Team, he is partnered up with Squirrel as her spotter. Aside from that, he is never far away from his best friend Bear due to his specialty in close combat and his preference of using an electromag rod he named "Lucy" and a semiautomatic shotgun.

The blonde next to Weasel with the ballistic mask known as Squirrel on the other hand served mainly as a demolitions specialist. She was the FNG of Bravo Team…but her skills with a sniper rifle had made her a very worthy addition due to Bravo Team's specialization in the art of long-range combat and the art of unconventional warfare in general; particularly in the areas of reconnaissance and any other sort of black operation.

Bear stood at the ready…but still inspecting the ground for a new weapon to replace his now empty 40mm grenade launcher. Bear was one of the taller members of Turk Company, and one of the few who fought with their bare hands. He was also known because he was about the only member of Turk Company in general that was bald. Wolf and Eagle had known both Weasel and Bear for a while, and knew that the two men complimented each other in close combat with Weasel providing speed while Bear added power to the duo. It was with this power that Bear fit in with the more aggressive approach that Alpha Team favored, and it was also why he was their main heavy weapons and assault operative.

Eagle offered the submachine gun to Bear. "How far away is the rest of Turk Company?"

Bear politely refused the weapon and instead picked up an assault rifle. "Many of them are still finding the way here. But one thing's for sure, Wolf will be here first."

"Then we'd best get ready. Squirrel, get those charges ready to breach the doors…if any of you are out of ammo for your automatic weapons then scavenge for a new gun. Those Mike Foxtrots are not going to leave that position because the only way out for them is through that door we're about to blow. They will be expecting us, and so we need to be ready because that will be their chokepoint to funnel us through. They want to dig themselves in deep and wait for us to come? Well let's go on in and help them dig…and while we're at it, let's bury them in the graves they were so desperate to hide in, oorah?"

His answer was a determined and collective "Oorah" from everyone else in the area. "Then let's get to work." With that, Eagle began searching the bodies for the same submachine gun he wielded, looking for the clips for the gun…a cornered animal was more dangerous than a free one, and everyone in Turk Company would need every advantage they can get…even if that advantage meant stealing from the dead…

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><p><em><strong>AN: Now we nearing the conclusion to the assault…while I think of how I can approach the next chapter, who can tell me the identities of Turk Company's Animal members? If you have gotten the answer wrong with Eagle, then you should be ashamed of yourselves…the hints are right there in the previous memory of the assault. We will not know the aftermath until we see Vincent in the present…and he explains from his viewpoint what happened after the assault.**_

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><p><em><strong>Songs Used:<strong>_

"_**The Legend of Ashitaka" by Joe Hisaishi from "Princess Mononoke": Eagle and Rabbit talk**_

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><p><em><strong>VocabularyCulture Notes:**_

_**FNG—this is a military abbreviation for "Freaking New Guy" (nice way) or "Fucking New Guy" (mean way).**_


	6. Cookie Jar

_**A/N: Now we are back to reading about Yuffie in the present…and like the good thieving little ninja girl she is, she's going to try and rob her benefactor blind. My lord, what is it that she is going to pocket? Do read and review, would you kindly?**_

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><p>Present Time…<p>

Yuffie started running around the house quietly…she knew that her host would not tolerate theft, and she also knew the consequences of getting caught doing so…thus her attempt to finding out where he hid all his treasures. There was no way this man was a bum…he was most likely an eccentric well-to-do person, and so if she can't find any cash, she'll just have to make do with blackmail until she can get money from him. She slid the shoji door open to find herself looking at something she never thought she'd see for a while…she saw a rock garden near a pond filled with koi under the shade of a red pine and a few shoots of bamboo, and it was surrounded by a lawn. The whole of this place gave her a sense of peace by the way the architecture mixed elegance with simplicity…and the koi swimming around in the pond helped to grant that sense of tranquility as well as the sands of the rock garden.

She simply closed the door, reminding herself that she would have to come back here to see this garden again. She walked around even further into the mansion and found a room with various chests upon opening the door…perhaps he hid some goods here…she pulled out a chest, and found that it contained scrolls. The curiosity got the better of her, and so she picked up one of the scrolls instantly in sight, untied the red string holding it shut, and unrolled it—what she saw had astounded her! It was a sumi-e painting…the subject in question was a woman with a big bust, and long black hair with a red tie at the end holding it together. The woman was wearing a white tank top as shown by the bright gray outline, and she was hugging a group of children to her chest in a motherly fashion—her face showed that she was smiling, but at the same time, she saw that her wine-colored eyes were filled with a sort of sadness that made it clear to Yuffie that this woman had lost someone important to her, and the children she was showing love to had helped to ease the pain. This was a beautiful painting indeed—and the character "Love" written on the upper-right corner of the picture and the words "May it never be an impossible cause for all to find it" in the lower left hand corner entirely in kanji…where the Fuukousougen Empire has their own writing system incorporating katakana, hiragana, and kanji, the Suiryuseki Kingdom wrote exclusively in kanji which is broken down into a traditional form and a simplified form implying that the writing systems used by the former was adapted from the latter. At the lower-left corner of the picture was a seal stamped in cinnabar next to the signature of "Tieqing Feiying". Due to her education in the arts, she knew full well the work of a master…given that she had heard of many of the great sumi-e painters and seen their works; she knew that this "Tieqing Feiying" was definitely a master despite not having any apparent sort of renown and the work in question she was looking at proved it! This painting alone was probably going to be worth a lot in the next pawn shop or gallery she finds!

She wasted no time in hiding the scroll in her pocket, and so she went ahead and started pocketing four more scrolls before putting the chest back in its shelf and leaving the area. Yuffie immediately made do with the messenger bag she carried before searching the house some more for any valuables she could take away without her benefactor knowing. She swore to herself that she would compensate him for being nice to her…eventually…but her first priority was to find more stuff to steal before she went to sell those paintings out to the highest bidder. And so she went around the mansion looking for more stuff to steal…it was then that she came across a room with a view outside. She searched around the room, and found that it was another guest room of sorts with a coat closet. She opened the closet, and decided to fiddle around to find a way into the attic.

"If you're looking to steal someone's valuables in a fine place like this, the best place I would have started would've been the main bedroom." Yuffie's surprise was compounded when she heard that voice. She turned to see a foreign woman with gray hair looking at her with bluish eyes and an amused smile on her mouth…

* * *

><p>Vincent was on the balls of his feet, tending to his rhododendrons, clipping and pruning the bushes of stray branches. As he held his clippers in his right hand and a branch in the other, he felt a very familiar presence behind him. Oh he knew who it was that was here, and he knew that she was smiling at him even with his back to her. "What flowers are you looking for miss?"<p>

The voice that spoke was always sweet…always matching of the purity of its owner. The woman had a kind smile on her face framed by auburn hair as she looked at him with the clearest green eyes one would see. "I'm looking for fifty rhododendron branches, twenty hydrangea stalks, a hundred rose stalks, and fifty flowering branches each of your flowering fruit trees among others."

"How is your husband Aerith?"

"Zack is doing well…in fact he's adjusting quite nicely into his new role as a university professor after his tour in the military."

"Does he know your secret?"

"Of course…but what about the princess you have in your care?"

"No, and I made sure that she believes Wing-san is my real name. And besides, it was getting too lonely here, so I figured it would be easier to keep a secret if she only stayed for a few days longer to throw her trackers off her trail."

The smile on Aerith's face had widened significantly—from an innocent smile to a cat-ate-the-canary grin. "You like her don't you?"

"That's quick."

"And you're not denying it."

"So who is the target?"

The smile had darkened a great deal upon hearing that last line. This was something Aeris knew she didn't like…but it was a necessary evil. This was the part of her work that made her feel guilty—and that part was to condemn certain people to death…at the hands of agents such as Vincent. "Always business first with you isn't it Vincent? Anyway, I don't want you to do this job just yet. After all, you do know what tomorrow is, don't you?"

"Oh yes…the full moon. It's that time of the year when my prayer beads stop working, and my main job begins. Is Sephiroth in a bad mood after last month's quota?"

"No, it's more like he disapproves of you in general and your moonlight activities in the political world with mortals; even though your existence is currently the best-kept secret in the kingdom. I really don't understand why he should blow a gasket when you're looking to help your people, albeit in a very discrete manner. After all, you did promise your parents that you would help the kingdom one of these days."

"Well, anything to rile the good general up…just because he is my boss does not mean I like that cold-hearted monster. I wouldn't be surprised if in place of his heart was a black hole."

"I understand…even I don't like him. But going back on topic, after tonight's job, I will mail the details of the assignment to you."

"It will be done then."

"By the way, please watch over the princess…I have a feeling about her."

"Is she that significant?"

"Not in the sense that she will affect anyone else…no, I think that she will be significant to you in the future. How, I don't know, but I do know she will be significant to you in the good way."

"I'll do that…and if Sephiroth is looking for my report on last month's quota, it's in the office in the usual spot—all I ask in return is that you promise me that you'll at least record the general's reaction when you get there. In the meantime, I'll see to your order of flowers."

"I'll make sure to get you a photograph as soon as I come back then."

"By the way, how is your 'mother' doing?"

"Oh she's doing well…I brought her here to have a look at this place. She decided to have a look around while I find you and introduce you to her later."

"She's talking to the princess right now isn't she?"

"Oh yes…in fact, I think she was caught with her cute and thieving little hand in the proverbial cookie jar."

* * *

><p>Yuffie looked at the old lady in front of her…something told her that that sweet smile held a bit of mischief brewing behind it. "Uh, you're not the client that the owner of this mansion spoke of are you?"<p>

"Heavens no, but my daughter is."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Well, depending on what you do for me, I will consider not telling…"

"Name it…and it's yours! Just don't talk, I'm begging you! He'll kill me if he finds out!"

"If you show me one of the scrolls you pocketed, I'll consider not talking…"

She weighed her options…perhaps it would not hurt to show her one of the paintings she stole…hell, maybe it was an opportunity to appraise another work of art…and with that consideration on mind, she made up her mind. "Okay, fine…I'll show you one of the scrolls I took!"

Yuffie pulled out a random scroll from her messenger bag, untied it, and unrolled it for the two of them to see…and what they saw was beautiful…it was made up of black branches with several apricot blossoms in bud while many were flowering, and flying around in the middle was a sparrow. Its brush strokes exemplified the power of simplicity mixed in with elegance that was the highlight of sumi-e. The title of the work was "Sparrow in Spring", and it was sure to be a hit in any museum.

"I hope you enjoyed that."

Yuffie felt like a deer in the headlights of a car…she turned, and found herself looking at Vincent giving her a look that said 'you're next young lady!' but he turned his attention to the older woman next to Yuffie…and then a look of realization hit him! "Ah! You must be Aerith's mother. How do you do miss…"

The older woman offered her hand. "Elmyra…Elmyra Gainsborough."

Vincent extended his hand, and the two shook hands. "Such a nice name…"

"Why thank-you!"

Before she could even think of getting away, Vincent turned back to Yuffie as she was taking a quick step back, and was frozen upon hearing "Don't move just yet!" The look of annoyance on his face was clear, and his sigh only showed his disappointment. "Since you're going to be staying here for a while, I'm going to assume that you are going to need walking-around money when you leave due to the fact that you didn't seem to be carrying a wallet on you, so you can keep the paintings you took—I don't think they're worth anything except one of them. But in exchange for taking something of value to me, I have this…"

As he spoke, he pulled out a rather intricate tortoiseshell hairpin with cherry blossom carvings from his sleeve. Oh Yuffie knew what that was! It was her most treasured possession in the world! That bastard stole her mother's hairpin! With that on mind, Yuffie fought to try and get it back only to fail as Vincent was rather quick to keep the hairpin out of reach. "You didn't let me finish…I'll keep this until you work off your debt for staying here by helping to clean up the mansion for the next few days. If you do this, then I'll also let you keep the all the paintings to do with as you please. On the other hand, you can just return the paintings and you'll get it back without a fuss. Is that a fair deal?"

Yuffie looked at Vincent with a hate in her eyes…but then it softened as she remembered that this was her karma for trying to steal from him when he was being nice to her. She knew that that hairpin was the only thing left of her mother…and so it would be worth the wait. And besides, she did need to lay low for a while…so she may as well work to earn her keep. "Alright then, I'll work for you. But if you don't give me back that hairpin after I've done all this for you, then I'll make you sorry you ever took it from me. Am I clear?"

"Crystal. I am after all a man of my word."

"One question though…when do I start?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: To the people who cannot get the identity of the woman in the first painting and why it is more important than the other three paintings correct, shame on you…the hints are already there. For that, the people who already knew will get a slice of cake while you watch as they eat each slice of that black forest cake slowly and in front of your eyes while you're tied up and unable to get a slice for yourself!**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Songs Used:<strong>_

"_**Aruruian Dance" by Nujabes from "Samurai Champloo": Yuffie appraises the painting.**_

"_**Breeze" by Daisuke Ishiwatari from "Blazblue: Continuum Shift": Vincent speaking with Aerith.**_

"_**Comedy" by Daisuke Ishiwatari from "Blazblue: Continuum Shift": Yuffie out thieving, and then gets caught.**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>VocabularyCulture Notes:**_

_**Koi—for those who don't know, koi are carp raised for ornamental purposes…the art was originally Chinese, but the Japanese adapted it and bred their own fish.**_

_**Tieqing Feiying—this is Mandarin for "Ashen Eagle".**_


	7. Fourth Memory: Trap

_**A/N: Now we get to see a big twist regarding the assault…one that will tell the tale to one of you as to why Vincent is so isolated fifty years in the future…and let me tell you, I won't promise that it will be pretty. I won't tell you how it happens yet, but I will say that I don't plan on killing everyone in the assault (just a lot of people), so if you're a CloTi fan, cross your fingers that they survive this. But all the same, do read and review would you kindly?**_

* * *

><p>Fifty years ago…45 minutes after the first shots were fired…<p>

World Regenesis Organization HQ…

The World Regenesis Organization was a band of counterterrorism specialists and a police organization with members from every corner of the world. They also served as a sort of paramilitary force when they were started by one Reeve Tuesti as a side project to his engineering projects. Reeve himself used to be a tactical commander and combat engineer of Shin-Ra's special operations forces—and he was proud to serve under Lazard Shin-Ra himself, gods rest his soul…to hear of the atrocities performed by Deepground had made him furious, and the part of him that was a civil engineer was raging at the collateral damage done to many of his buildings in order to kill more people. What's worse, to know that Professor Hojo betrayed the Suiryuseki Royal Family and killed the king and queen—his own brother and sister-in-law over power had disgusted him. And up to this point in time, he was angry at the fact that so many terrorists were wandering about ruling from the shadows with an iron fist of terror—with no less than 95% of them being affiliated with Deepground, and thanks to him and his freelance specialists, the number was going down quite quickly. However, as of this moment, he was not angry in the slightest…no, the situation had gone bad…so bad that it was going to be hell to reverse. Was he angry at all now? No…after hearing what he heard from one of his undercover agents, Reeve was terrified and frantic, and to the point that he was running down the hall from his office to the communications room. "Do we have any contact at all?"

"No sir. The entire area has been dark to long-range communications for the past half hour or so now. As a matter of fact, it's been dark ever since Alpha and Bravo have entered the factory. They must be jamming all long-range signals for this to be possible. Last I heard, the Highwind however is on nearby in the event that air support is needed."

"Get me Highwind then… tell him it's urgent. If I know that man, it's that he takes rather good care of that vessel of his…so I'm guessing he has already installed an ECCM unit on that bucket of bolts he calls an airship to counteract any ECM that's jamming him."

"What do you think I've been doing? I've been trying to contact him for the past fifteen minutes now. What the hell is wrong?"

The look on Reeve's face as he glared at the communications officer showed desperation and fear…fear as though something were too late. This was what frightened her most—something was wrong with the mission, and now she knew it, and so it was no surprise to her to hear what he had to say afterwards, and him saying it quickly with anger in his voice to the point that he was almost yelling. "If you care any bit for those soldiers out there Mira, then you'd better stop asking questions right fucking now, and get the fuck to work on getting a fucking line with fucking Highwind, and get it right fucking now! I don't fucking care if you have to get the nearest fucking gunship to land on that goddamn ship of his to tell him face-to-face, I don't even fucking care if you have to fucking walk on over there to do it your fucking self! Just get him talking to us right the fuck now, because this mission has been fucking compromised from the minute I learned that fucking intelligence was fucking fake!"

Oh she knew it was urgent all right…when Reeve started using the f-word at all, it was guaranteed that this was bad. With that, Mira started to move quickly…she had to get anything to communicate with the Highwind…she needed to hurry before all of Turk Company would be caught in the middle of a trap—with no apparent means of escape…

* * *

><p>Mithril Factory Basement Level…<p>

All of Turk company was stacked up behind the door with the C4 breaching charge ready to blow the door open and killing anyone from behind. Tiger and Rhino had their riot shields ready. The plan was that after the door was breached, one smoke grenade from each team would be thrown into the room, and thermal goggles would be ready as everyone moved in to assault everyone behind the door with overwhelming firepower. Bear and Squirrel would be taking care of breaching the next door while Tiger and Rhino spearheaded this part of the assault.

Eagle looked to Bear and Squirrel, shouldering their new RPG launchers as he held his new 9mm submachine guns in each hand. Wolf had spent the last few moments loading more 9mm rounds into his magazines for his burst pistol and his katana at the ready. The sounds of assault rifles and shotguns being loaded and pumped respectively filled the air. This was a man-sized version of the armored spearhead tactic—instead of tanks being at the front, it was men with metal riot shields, backed by two people carrying rocket launchers, while everyone else made sure that they weren't being flanked.

The countdown had begun in Eagle's head. He wondered if it was possible that a trap was waiting for them down here…no, he must push such thoughts aside…there was a very big possibility that Hojo was here…and the sooner he finishes this mission, the better. He refused to allow that man to ruin another life—to ruin another childhood! So many children that day lost their parents, so many lives lost…all because of his greed for power! Eagle did not care about the science projects that Hojo had been coming up with…not when vengeance was so close at hand. He knew that revenge solved nothing, but at least he felt that those good souls who were killed by his acts of terrorism would rest easy knowing that their murderer would be serving a sentence in the jail of hell. With all hesitation gone, he gave the word, and all time seemed to slow the second that breaching charge detonated.

"SMOKE AND CLEAR!"

After he gave the order for the assault to begin, it was then that time truly began to move rather slowly for him…as if everything were soaking in a sort of very thick syrup. Thankfully, he had everyone put on their infrared goggles so that they could fight in the grenade-generated smokescreen as they charged in. The second that Eagle made it out of the door, he jumped out of the line, and began to spray the nine o'clock position with short bursts of gunfire from both submachine guns upon landing, and then charging in with everyone else behind him taking up better cover as he charged into the next cover the second his submachine guns let out the click of emptiness. It was then that he took out his revolver, and went out of cover fired three shots of three .500 S&W rounds into the general area, taking down a good four terrorists before the gunfire had ceased. "EVERYONE, FORM UP!"

With that, everyone got back into their positions, and Bear fired a round from his RPG launcher. This was going rather well…and as he was moving along, Eagle took out the speedloaders for his revolver, and immediately aimed for the next shot at the door the second the explosive created another opening…

* * *

><p>Airship "Highwind"…<p>

Cid was happy so far, that he began to savor his cigarette…the terrorism pandemic was going to end here and now; granted, he knew that there would still be terrorists running around doing god-knows-what in order to cause the deaths of more innocent people. This was exactly why he signed up with the WRO—he had never seen such savagery until Deepground had done what they did, and he was a captain in the Shin-Ra Air Force. What made his day curious however, was the appearance of a gunship that flew on over with a message to him from Reeve…that was strange, he knew that if the boss-man wanted to speak to him, all he had to do was make a call. As of now, he was currently waiting for the information that Reeve wanted said to him…but at the same time, he could not help but feel satisfaction in the fact that those terrorist scum got what was coming to them. Oh yeah, he could do with a shot of Roger Moore's 1987 Rocket Town whiskey right about now…as a matter of fact, the bottle was right in front of him now, and so was the shot glass…he put out his cigarette, and started reaching for both bottle and shot glass for some relaxation time in inebriation…the second his hands were about to touch the objects in question, the sound of the door opening interrupted his thoughts.

The captain was not pleased that his relaxation was interrupted, but he knew it was important. "Captain Highwind I presume?"

"Speaking."

"I have a message from the boss. It's urgent."

"Well why the bloody hell doesn't he just call us up?"

"That's just the thing, the reason why is because according to him, all long-range communications are being jammed."

The look of fear on Cid's face was clear…he knew the consequences that a lack of communication could bring…but he was in denial as to whether things were as they were. "Impossible…my ship's got an ECCM unit…there's not a bloody chance that we're being jammed…unless…"

Before he could finish that line, the klaxons sounded off—something was definitely wrong…and sure enough, a voice emerged from his communicator. "Captain, we have multiple contacts heading our way—they appear to be SSMs, and they're travelling at almost 100km/hr!"

"Activate the fucking CIWS units! Don't let those bloody missiles get here! And you!" He said, pointing to the agent, "Don't you bloody fucking move! As soon as we're done with this shit storm, you and me are finishing this sodding discussion, savvy?"

* * *

><p>Mithril Factory Ground Level…<p>

While the army was the mainstay of the Shin-Ra Republic's armed forces, and her marines were among the finest soldiers in the world, hardly anybody held up to the might of her special commando unit—the SOLDIER unit was a bunch of genetically-enhanced super-soldiers chosen from a wide pool of recruits and volunteers from all aspects of the Republic's warriors. Cloud Strife was among those who fit under the latter category…for some reason, General Biggs himself had hand-picked him for the program personally; why, he may never know. The augmentations involved in turning a normal trooper into a SOLDIER was painful, but on some level, Cloud was thankful for them because it enhanced his reflexes such that he was able to drive his tank with better efficiency in the last battle against Deepground, as well as to handle that sword that Colonel Fair gave to him. Now his mission as part of the tank unit was to be part of the assault forces as they tore through the remnants in this area.

Turk Company was busy handling with everyone else on the inside…by the time this day was over, there would be no Deepground terrorists to tell the tale of this moment, and even if they did, their children would tell stories of memories they've seen of the consequences that befell those that would do what they did. He did care about two members of Turk Company in particular though. As he drove his tank through the buildings on patrol, he began to think back on the night that Tifa came on over to his place…she had a confused and tear-filled look about her. It was raining, as if to set the mood for her sadness. She said nothing…she simply grabbed him in a hug that practically demanded comfort…that was bordering on breaking his spine with her strength…that he was more than willing to return in order to make her happy. At the time, he had a pretty good idea what had happened…Vincent being a friend of his, had a habit of breaking up with girls he dates when he sees that they are conflicted about something; particularly when they find that they are in love with two men, but couldn't decide whether they should be with him or the other man. This must not have been easy for him to do, and from the fact that he was with Tifa down there, it must be rather awkward.

Before he could think on anymore of his love life, Cloud found a blip on the radar. It would not be long before he heard the sound of gunfire on the radio! "Can anybody hear me? This is Charlie Team, we're under heavy fire from machine gunners! We're currently pinned down, and our medic is down…he doesn't look…oh my god! Hostiles seem to have summoned a behemoth! Request immediate backup! I repeat, request immediate backup!"

"Charlie team, this is Captain Strife of the 43rd SOLDIER Regiment, you have a tank heading your way. We're currently Oscar Mike, so just hold on a bit longer and keep transmitting, and we'll get there, over!"

With that, Strife turned to his tank crew. "Wedge, turn us around, and track that transmission. We've got troopers to save, so double-time it!"

"Hooah!"

* * *

><p>Mithril Factory Basement Level…Fifteen minutes later…<p>

The last line of defense was set up…those Turk Company bastards would not enjoy their victory! Deepground had been ruling the world with impunity…everybody feared them, even those corrupt presidents and kings! And all those who would dare to oppose them would be killed—not even women and children in the world were spared! Many criminal organizations wanted to be in on the action in to gain more power—to the point that their ranks were swelled with lots of volunteers! Yes, it was a glorious time indeed, and the pragmatism of everyone that wished for power ensured that Deepground survived…however, after the people started fighting back, things went south!

The AVALANCHE mercenaries were the first among those who opposed Deepground and the rule of Hojo…and they were also among the most troublesome of opponents Weiss had ever encountered. Another opponent cropped up when Lazard Shin-Ra took power over the Schneider Empire after gathering a great deal of followers and supporters demanding a reform; the very second that that bullet shot out of Lazard's pistol and exploding inside the emperor's head was the very moment that the Shin-Ra Republic was born…and from then on, reforms had begun that made it so that the republic began to drive all Deepground members out and kill off anybody associated with them. The Wusheng Imperial Guard were stationed in North Wutai, while the people of South Wutai revolted and cried for vengeance from the very beginning against the murder of their last and rightful king, as well as that of his family; however, both factions were a thorn in Deepground's side in the darkness.

But the worst of the offenders was the World Regenesis Organization's Turk Company—they had the nerve to challenge the organization outright and in public! It was to the point that Weiss, Professor Hojo's right-hand man found himself with a rival in the one they called Eagle. Every victory that was won by Turk Company was done so with Eagle at the head…and it would seem that Turk Company would finally claim victory now…or so it seemed…Weiss knew something all right…and he knew that even if he's dead, Hojo would be getting the last laugh, and he himself would be laughing with him from beyond the grave! All he needed to do was to lead the gullible fools under his command to their deaths in order to make this look convincing and everything else will fall into place!

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: Cloud the tank commander…I wonder how people will be taking it…anyway, I'll be alternating between this story and "Blind Love"…so I'll update chapter seven for that story a while after this. In the meantime, I'm taking votes on who the traitor is…and our guesses are—**_

_**Wolf**_

_**Bear**_

_**Weasel**_

_**Other (Please specify in a comment on who you think the traitor is)**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Songs Used:<strong>_

"_**Bad Situation" by Toshiro Masuda from "Naruto"—Reeve's point of view**_

"_**Blow Me Away" by Breaking Benjamin from "Halo 2"—storming the way into the lab**_

"_**Splash" by Daisuke Ishiwatari from "Blazblue: Continuum Shift II"—Attack on the Highwind**_

"_**More Than His Share" by Martin O'Donnel and Michael Salvatori from "Halo 3:ODST"—Cloud to the rescue!**_

_**"Evil" by Toshiro Masuda from "Naruto"_**—**_Weiss thinking to himself  
><strong>_

* * *

><p><em><strong>VocabularyCulture Notes:**_

_**ECCM—short for 'electronic counter-countermeasures'**_

_**ECM—short for 'electronic countermeasures'**_

_**RPG—short for 'rocket-propelled grenade'**_


	8. IMPORTANT!

**Greetings to the fine folk that moderate our site.**

**Myself, along with many, have been writing and posting on your fine site for years now, some of the better examples of up and coming writers out there are now suddenly finding some of the stories we've come to love at risk of being removed without the chance to even rectify our errors.**

**For some, that means the permanent loss of a story. While I don't have anything that I believe violates your terms of use, there are those out there that are never able to recover a story in its original form, this is something I find to be almost worthy of a legal action, as while we cannot claim ownership of a character, the stories are OURS and simply destroying them is something that is inexcusable.**

**It's quite easy to simply add an MA rating, additional filters or even a simple requirement for a free membership to read the stories presented here, and would cut down on hateful anonymous reviews and posts at the same time, so I have to question as to why such a thing, in all this time, simply wasn't added.**

**If you're worried about falsification of a registration then have an appropriate disclaimer and then there can be no dispute, you took your steps and the PARENTS didn't monitor their children, if that is even your concern. If it is more of a personal view or desire then please at least let people know and give them a chance to remove a story that you and yours find offensive, most people on the site are actually rather cordial when it comes to such requests.**

**While I cannot say for sure if this letter will even reach those that may be willing to listen, of if it's more akin to a wide spectrum purge in preparation for something bigger, please understand that you are going to be looseing a LARGE number of your writers, and thus your income from a lack of readers if there is not some level of action taken to help with this situation.**

**For those that may agree with this, please feel free to sign on and send this to the support server, maybe we can get some movement on this.**

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